


What Goes Up...

by ChibiPanda



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Anxiety, Chapter 1 & 3 are just Ji, Emergency landings, Family, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Minor Injuries, Some Cursing, Worry, planes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-20
Updated: 2019-10-20
Packaged: 2020-10-25 00:14:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20714900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChibiPanda/pseuds/ChibiPanda
Summary: "Jisung’s heart was in his throat. He could barely breathe but forced himself to count the seats between him and the nearest exit, forced himself to memorize the distance between himself and that kid David, forced himself to make a count of other passengers nearby that might need help; the older man and elderly lady a few rows back, the mother and her small baby, and the group of kids around David."Jisung had been hoping for a smooth ride - just a normal flight from Korea to Cali, and a nice reunion with his members. He wasn't anticipating spending any of that time on the ocean...





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hopefully, some of you enjoy this! If I can get my act together I'll try to get the second chapter up shortly. Thanks for reading <3

It wasn’t the first time Jisung was flying alone. He’d flown a few times growing up as an unaccompanied minor to visit family and of course when he moved to Korea for auditioning. This was, however, the first time he’d flown by himself since debut.

Could a crowded plane be quiet? Because Jisung felt the silence was unusual. Of course, that was in part because his phone had died, so music wasn’t a thing he could listen to and the constant turbulence made writing nearly impossible. 

That was the other thing, the turbulence. The bumps and shakes were really starting to wear down his nerves. Making him rather anxious. Being alone wasn’t helping either.

He had thought it was going to be a walk in the park. Send off his members a few days before, do a couple of independent schedules, sleep, and hop on a plane – reunion – done and done.

The first part had been fine – albeit a bit bittersweet. Apparently, if you spend nearly every minute with someone, or eight someones, being alone is kind of unpleasant. The individual schedules went fine, great even, but it was still somewhat uncomfortable.

The guest MC thing was fun and the radio appearance was pretty good too. Though, even Jisung noticed how hard it was to keep a conversation going when he was the only one there to talk.

The night had been pretty uneventful. Take out dinner, a long shower with plenty of hot water, all that silence though; Jisung had spent most of the night, unable to sleep. Writing and whining instead.

So he was already struggling a bit when he was dropped off at the airport. 

No sleep and silence equaled anxiety and nervousness for Jisung. But the quick phone call with Chan helped some, as did the knowledge that only an eleven and a half hour flight stood between him and normalcy. 

The plane had been delayed, while Jisung and the other passengers sat on the runway, due to a ‘small’ engine issue. He liked to think that ‘small’ meant something like forgetting to attach the sticker saying ‘this side up’ but that seemed unlikely.

Regardless, they’d been up in the air for a few hours and, discounting turbulence, the plane seemed to be doing fine.

And the view was pretty beautiful, with the ocean glistening brilliantly in the sun and the few clouds seemingly only adding to its glory.

“Ladies and gentlemen this is your captain speaking, we’d like to apologize for the inconvenience but due to the continuing turbulence, we will be unable to serve our inflight meal. I’ve asked all of my crew to remain seated and buckled for the time being. Should things settle down, service will resume. Again we are sorry and thank you for your understanding.”

Groans and complaints flared up the second the intercom clicked off. Their pilot had been pushing back their meal since shortly after takeoff. The crew had delivered bottled water before they got off the ground, but Jisung hadn’t seen any of them since.

“Is the plane in trouble momma? We gonna crash? Is that why -”

“Baby stop. I’m sure there’s nothing to worry about,”

Jisung sighed quietly trying to tune out the mother and child’s conversation. But it wasn’t easy. As another rough shake rattled the passengers and more frightened voices rose over the growing unease – somewhere towards the front of the plane a baby started to cry again.

“The worst,” Jisung huffed silently, wincing as another – more violent – jolt forced his leg into the armrest.

Things continued for nearly an hour – harsh bumps, cries of fear and anxiety, no food nor drinks, rising unease, and discomfort. 

Many of the passengers were becoming more and more restless, some more vocal than others and Jisung noticed the young boy seated across the aisle from him crying softly. The kid was with a few other children, most with faces of fear. Unaccompanied minors Jisung assumed.

“Are we gonna die mister?” the boy, probably seven, questioned after catching Jisung’s eye, “I was just visiting my grandma…” his voice broke towards the end.

“Hey, don’t cry kid…” Jisung faltered awkwardly glancing around for help, “I’m sure everything is just fine. You traveling to your grandmothers then?” he tried to change the subject and was thankful the kid at least spoke Korean.

“Uh uh, I’m going home now. My grandma lives in Korea…”

There was yet another jolt and the guy beside Jisung shouted something obscene, “Did you have a good visit with her?”

The boy jumped at the man’s yell, but answered anyway, “Yes. She moved last year and I missed her lots.”

Jisung smiled, “I’m glad you had a good time. Is this your first time flying alone? You seem pretty young,” he added playfully.

“No! I’m almost seven and a half,” he held up his fingers for emphasis, “and I flew to Korea by myself, ‘cause I’m a big kid.”

“You sure are, I was a chicken when I was your age!”

“Really!?”

The joy fizzled from the child’s eyes when the next jolt caused even the lights to flicker.

The fasten seatbelt sign, which had been on the entire flight, flashed a few times and the pilot’s voice again rang out over the cabin, “The is your captain, the turbulence does not show any signs of letting up and additionally it appears we have an issue with one of our primary engines. Firstly, let me explain that while the engine issue is a problem, it is not as serious as it might sound.”

The man continued on, but Jisung couldn’t fully hear over the sudden uproar; terror and annoyance.

Apparently, the pilot foresaw this because he paused, “While I don’t expect to have to make an emergency landing, we have contacted the United States Coast Guard and flight control towers in both Korea and the US. I’d also appreciate if everyone reviewed the emergency information located in the seat pocket in front of you.” he then attempted to make the same speech again in English

Jisung tuned him out. He tried to process what was just said, but his brain simply couldn’t keep up. They might crash – or land – emergency land on the freaking ocean… Did anyone else know that the plane might be in trouble? Did the news cover it? Did his members know? Would they even find out if the plane went down? What if they -

His own personal anxious interior rambling was broken by the growing fear and concern circling the cabin. Jisung quickly fished out his phone, forgetting it was dead, “fuck…”

“Sir?” one of the flight attendants was handing out life vests – life vests! – “We are just taking every precaution, please try not to worry.”

The kid was crying again, the guy next to him looked ill, and the woman handing him the yellow vest was already wearing one.

Jisung nodded and shakily grabbed the piece of plastic, freaking out internally.

The plane bucked again and Jisung’s brain suddenly spiked. What about their stage? What if he missed it? Would the boys know by then? Would they be forced to perform?

He tried to take a calming breath and pulled the yellow plastic over his head, briefly clutching the small necklace Chan had gotten him – a silver ‘J.One.’ Chan had saved up and gotten 3racha custom made necklaces before debut.

At least he’d be identifiable…

“Shit…” he muttered quietly rummaging through his backpack and pulling the notebook from it. He was being dramatic and paranoid but he couldn’t handle it.

Jisung jotted down a few very important things. His name in both English and Korean, his love for his family, and finally a note to his members; nothing lengthy or wordy, but it was enough – in case.

_‘Hey, I just wanted to say I’m thankful for you all. I love you all. You haven’t just made Stays stay – you’ve made me stay too. Stay strong and keep working, even without me._

_I’m always with you,  
Jisung_

_PS Forever Stray Kids’ Han <3 _

He carefully tore the page from the book, emptied the plastic bag he’d stored his contact solution in, and carefully sealed he note tightly in it. Then put it deep within his pocket, making sure it wouldn’t easily fall out.

The cabin seemed to have quieted as the reality seeped in, filled mainly with tears and low murmurs.

The plane continued to fly, shaky though it was, for another hour before the pilot spoke again.

During that hour Jisung tried to comfort the kid, who’s name was David, as best he could. However, it wasn't working all that well.

When the announcement came on again it wasn’t exactly comforting either. It made Jisung grip the note tightly through his jean pocket.

“We are going to make an emergency landing attempt. I’ve been in constant contact with the U.S. coast guard and they know of our situation and have already dispatched assistance,” there was a pause and the cabin was stunningly silent, “when we land, we will need to exit the plane quickly and efficiently. Please leave all your belongings that are not necessary for your survival. The inflatable slides located at each of the doors will be used as rafts while we wait for rescue. There should be enough room for all passengers. Please remember to keep children and elderly on the inside of the raft,” there was another longer pause and then, “I promise to take us down as safely as possible. Please brace for impact.”

Jisung’s heart was in his throat. He could barely breathe but forced himself to count the seats between him and the nearest exit, forced himself to memorize the distance between himself and that kid David, forced himself to make a count of other passengers nearby that might need help; the older man and elderly lady a few rows back, the mother and her small baby, and the group of kids around David.

“David-ah, do you know how to swim?” Jisung forced the sigh down seeing the shake, “Ask the others around you please.” he swallowed thickly and turned to the man sitting next to him and the couple seated in front, “excuse me, uh, some of those kids don’t swim,” thankfully all of them seemed to understand Jisung’s shaky English and nodded.

“I’ll help keep an eye on them,” the man in front said steadily.

Suddenly Jisung felt his stomach drop and flutter as the plane dipped harshly.

Time seemed to speed up and stop all at once and all he could think about was whether his friends knew.

The lights flickered and people screamed, but Jisung clutched at the necklace and closed his eyes tightly. Trying to block out all the screams.

The actual impact was rougher than anyone seemed to have expected. Some of the overhead compartments broke open and luggage crashed to the floor, some zippers snapping open, pieces hitting those sitting in the aisle. There was harsh sounds of breaking plastic and glass, the disgusting sound of bending metal, and the sudden splash of water lapping against the edges of the plane.

The seatbelt cut painfully into Jisung’s lower abdomen and his body was forced forward harshly crashing into the seat in front of him.

The lights flickered a few times before going black.

And then there was smoke.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go~

Getting to LA a few days early was probably the best gift Chan had received – or at least the best in the last few months from management. It meant that he and seven of his members got a bit of time to adjust, relax, and explore. Though he’d be lying if he said he didn’t miss Jisung. As stupid as that sounded.

The nine of them were together so much, that if even one was missing it was like a color had suddenly turned grey. And for Chan specifically, Jisung represented a very common calming color – like blue or a warm yellow.

They’d been friends too long. Been through too much.

Of course, Jisung had only been away from them for a day and a half, and was, assuming there had been no other delays, well on his way to reuniting with them.

Chan had checked until he was sure that Jisung was in the air, so he’d known about the early delay. Jisung had also sent a mass text to complain about being trapped on the runway.

Since then, however, everyone had taken to relaxing and waiting for their missing member – and rehearsal which was supposedly taking place shortly after he was set to land.

Minho had left with Seungmin to explore the area around the hotel. Jeongin was currently napping, or on his phone, Chan wasn’t sure. Their youngest tended to claim he was napping often just to get some downtime alone. Hyunjin, Woojin, and Felix were curled together watching the television. Changbin was there too, though his attention was more focused on his phone than it was on the larger screen.

“What are you watching anyway? Can you even understand it?” Chan added that last bit in fun, Woojin and Hyunjin both had really great listening comprehension.

“Anthony Bourdain,” Felix provided cramming a half dozen chips into his mouth, “the one where he went to Vietnam.”

“Oh! That’s a good one,” Chan found his place on the bed sandwiched between Felix and Hyunjin, “I always want to go travel and eat whenever I watch him. Makes me hungry?”

“Everything makes you hungry,”

“Me too,” Woojin commented, ignoring the snarky remark made by Changbin, and remaining entirely focused on the remaining minutes of the show.

“We should order lots of food after practice,” Changbin lifted his head still smiling a bit cheekily from his spot in the corner, “Sung’s going to be starving. Airplane food is never that great.”

“Can we get Korean food?”

“Hyunjinie, we haven’t even been gone for 72 hours yet,” Woojin snorted.

“You’re thinking it too Hyung!”

“No, he’s wanting chicken,”

“I do eat other things, you know? Like different foods.”

“But everyone knows chicken is your favorite thing Hyung ~”

“I live with utter trolls,” Woojin laughed warmly.

“What’s that mean? I mean, I know what it means but like…” Hyunjin had pointed to the screen when he started the question, but his hand had lowered shortly after.

A news anchor had appeared on the screen along with the bold label ‘breaking news’ scrolling past.

“Breaking news as we come on air tonight, a commercial aircraft in route from South Korea heading towards Los Angeles has reportedly made an emergency landing on the Pacific Ocean approximately fifteen minutes ago. The flight had reported experiencing engine trouble around the five-hour mark. According to Coast Guard officials, the pilot reported partial engine failure eight hours into the eleven and a half hour flight. Roughly fifteen hundred miles off the west coast. With us,” the man motioned towards the camera and a second later another image popped up revealing a balding man, “Kevin McClain our correspondent. Kevin?”

“Thank you, John. Asian Air flight 1413 was carrying approximately two hundred and thirty passengers and staff –“

“That’s not…Jisung isn’t…he’s on 1314 or something. Right?” Changbin’s question drew everyone’s attention from the screen.

“No…what…No, of course not. That can’t,” Hyunjin shook his head dismissively, though his voice told a different tale.

“No, his flight has gotta be…about half,” Woojin tapered off as he cast a look towards Chan.

“He’s on there – that’s Ji’s flight, isn’t it?”

Chan nodded slowly, answering Felix’s question quietly.

“Though the Coast Guard hasn’t had contact with the flight since the pilot announced preparations for an emergency landing, they are confident. ‘We were made aware of the situation very early on and dispatched crews immediately,’ one official told me a few minutes ago. They also believe that, as the crew and passengers had time to prepare, things should have been fairly routine –“

The news anchors continued to fill the silences with discussion, eventually changing topics to the local fires and weather, but the boys stayed stunned.

“He’ll be alright though, won’t he?” Felix questioned quietly, clearly afraid of the answer, “they said it was routine…right?”

Chan didn’t know who the question was directed to, him he supposed, but there was really no answer to be given. He needed to call their manager. Let Seungmin and Minho know – before they found out on their own – to wake Jeongin… “I’m sure he’s gonna be fine ‘lix,” of course he’d be fine, Jisung was smart and resourceful.

“Sung’s a good swimmer…” Changbin slowly added.

“The graphic said it was about 2,735 km from the coast,” Woojin held up his phone showing the story he’d found on Naver, “Korea is already reporting Sung was on the plane…” he paused bring the phone back so he could read, “I guess some of NCT was supposed to be on the flight too, but their company booked a different flight last minute – according to this anyway.”

Chan took out his own phone to check for himself, but before he could do anything it started to ring. “Hello, yes…we saw, or, uh, Jeonginie is sleeping I think and Minho is out with Seungmin.” He paused and glanced around the room. The others were listening, silent and agitated, “I understand… I’ll be going with you… Good, yeah alright…Bye,” Chan sighed heavily and lowered his phone, “The company is issuing a statement. We’re not allowed to post on socials,” he made a noise and pulled up he phone again muttering, “I need to let the others know about the not posting,” before he continued to relay the information, “I guess the Coast Guard and Consulate already pulled passenger info and emergency contact stuff, they told management the ETA to the site was at most three hours. I guess… but that was a while ago now…”

“What about Jisung?”

The caution in Changbin’s question hurt, “I – they don’t know anything Binnie. About anyone on the plane… Everyone was obviously scared, but fine before it went down. But they haven’t had contact since…”

“When,” Felix swallowed and rubbed his neck harshly, “will we know? In three hours? Or less?”

“I don’t know ‘lix, maybe. All –“ Chan cut himself off before repeating the exact words their manager had said – _all surviving passengers would be brought in _– and instead said, “everybody will be brought to the UCLA hospital once they’re here.”

“But when?” Hyunjin glanced back to the TV, “When will that be?”

Chan faltered, “I’m not sure. They’re far out there… the only reason the Coast Guard is even as close as they are is because the pilot kept in constant contact with them – told them so early…it could be hours…”

“I’m going with you to meet up with him.”

“Changbin –“

“I’m going too!”

“Guys…” Chan had expected this, “we can’t all go…you know that.”

“Why not?”

“I am not waiting here, Chan.”

“You can’t expect us to stay here –“

“Listen. It’s a hospital and there’s gonna be a lot of people, we just… can't all go…” seeing the complaints rise again, he continued, “We’ll deal with that later – please. I’ve to get Minho-ah and Seungminie back here, wake Jeongin up, figure out what – how – to explain this,” Chan blinked rapidly for a few seconds, “and, I don’t know, should I call Ji’s parents? I’m sure they’ve been told but still –“

“Take a breath Channie, we can’t do anything right now but wait,” Woojin interrupted the panic softly, “We’ll wake Jeongin when the others get back and go from there.”

“Right…yeah, but what if he’s already aw – no okay,”

For the next hour, the television provided the only sound in the hotel room. The news continued, occasionally giving updates, but offering no new information. Eventually, the international news switched to local and the anchors changed, but the silence beyond the television did not.

“Woah, who died?”

No one had heard the keycard, or the hotel lock click open, but everyone heard Minho’s question and no one reacted well to it; most visibly flinched, Changbin blanched painfully, and Hyunjin’s eyes burned.

“Why can’t we post to Instagram? Seungmin added a second before reading the room, “Wait, what happened?”

“I’ll go and get Jeongin,” Hyunjin muttered swallowing thickly, quickly leaving to gather their maknae.

“No one has died,” Changbin tried to sound forceful; he did, though it also rang out with painful hope as well.

“Coast Guard reached them!” Felix’s voice broke through the confused haze, “look!”

“Reached who?” Seungmin questioned again but was shushed instantly as Woojin increased the volume.

“-oast Guard reports that they have made contact with the remaining passengers and have begun rescue efforts. Initial reports state that the plane was entirely submerged and that the majority of passengers who managed to evacuate did so without serious injury. We also have reports of hypothermia among individuals who were unable to be placed on the la –“

“Is that Jisung’s plane?!”

Minho’s frantic realization is what greeted Hyunjin and Jeongin as the door opened again.

“What?” Jeongin asked wide-eyed as the door shut behind him.

“Have you heard from him?”

“Is he alright?”

“Is this –“

“It said the majority were unharmed…Chan-hyung…”

Chan closed his eyes quickly and took a calming breath, then as calmly as he could explain – once again – what their manager had told him.

“But…Ji…his phone was dying…” Minho sputtered tightly, gazing at the screen for a moment, “I guess…there wouldn’t have been signal…”

“But he’ll be fine though…” Jeongin’s hair and clothes were still ruffled with sleep, tousled, his voice was steady but also horribly unsure, “right? He’s gotta be. He’s Jisung-hyung.”

Chan wanted to believe those words – did somewhere in his head – but there was that dark pitch black spot in his brain that screamed harsh words and damning thoughts. And it was unbearably loud, shouting all the worst-case scenarios and absolutely horrible outcomes it could muster.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for reading and for all the kind words!! You guys are the best!!! I have the next chapter written too hehe


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go again! <3

The ringing in Jisung’s ears was actually the sound of some alarm jarred during impact and not a result of his personal impact with the seatback in front of him. A fact he only barely became aware of after forcing his eyes open and blinking back against the stinging onslaught of thick smoke. So thick he could feel it fill his eyes and it being forced out with painful tears.

Sounds were distorted – screams, cries, waves, alarms, shouting, all blurred together – nothing made sense and everything hurt.

Someone was shouting, more commanding, but Jisung couldn’t fully piece the words together. They needed to get out, of course, that much he knew. They’d crashed in the ocean, who knew how long a giant piece of metal would stay afloat.

He tried to force his eyes open again despite the burning smoke. The open emergency doors were obvious, white-gray and illuminated from the outside, the emergency lights tracked towards those exits also pieced through the heavy haze.

People were moving now, some climbing over seats to get to the doors faster, others tripping over broken luggage and sprawled clothing.

“Are you hurt, sir?”

The English didn’t connect well, but Jisung managed to comprehend the meaning, “No,” he coughed, thick and clogged with more smoke, “those kids, some don’t swim good.”

“All right,” the woman responded, her voice tight, “I’ll watch out for them, please get to the exit.” She turned to the children then, pressing herself tightly to the seats allowing more passengers to flee.

Jisung’s hands shook as he tried to unbelt himself, it took a few attempts before he finally managed it. By then some of the smoke seemed to have cleared, more white than gray. Still dazed, he turned towards the man who’d been seated beside him.

The guy wasn’t conscious and in Jisung’s current blur, all he could think to do was to reach out and shake the guy gently. The man’s head lulled slightly before settling again, pitched forward and resting against his chest, “Uh, you okay?” Jisung reached out again, sluggishly prodding the man’s neck.

Jisung felt himself freeze there. There was no movement. No breathing, no moaning, no shifting, no crying, no struggling. No pulse. There wasn’t a pulse beneath his fingers. He fumbled again around the man’s neck in fuzzy desperation.

“Sir, please. Sir!”

Someone’s arm had firmly looped around Jisung’s middle pulling him away and into the small aisle.

“Sir,” the voice repeated, “You need to evacuate the plane, please.”

Jisung allowed himself to be pulled into a standing position, “but he…”

“I understand that, but everyone who can needs to get off the plane and onto one of the floatation rafts.”

“Right…” Jisung was thankful he wasn’t released until he steadied, “Okay. Right…” he muttered again to himself and slowly pulled away. His seatmate wasn’t the only person not moving. Jisung could make out a few throughout the hazy cabin as he walked slowly towards the openings. A couple shapes up near the front, silhouetted against smoldering plastic and another limply collapsed against the seats.

He wanted to look away but felt compelled not to as he staggered towards one of the open wing doors. There were passengers waiting to be assisted onto the rocking yellow inflatable plastic, some who’d yet to put on their flimsy-looking life vests, some bleeding…

Jisung forced his gaze away again and frantically felt his pocket for the slick plastic-covered note. He had to keep it in check. He couldn’t lose it; not right now. Maybe once he was in a hotel room surrounded by his brothers, enveloped in one of Woojin’s or Felix’s special hugs or maybe cradled in one of Changbin’s rarer ones, then he could breathe and break down – let everything get to him. But he couldn’t do that right now. Shouldn’t.

“Here. They want us to take a water before we get out. Gonna be a while before we, uh, get, you know.”

Jisung accepted the iced bottle from the man quietly. Watching as people were slowly lowered down the short distance onto the glittering plastic. It was bright, blindingly so, just like the water glaring back the sun’s rays.

“Slowly,” the last of the children was lowered the short distance, “Okay, I think this side can hole a couple more, maybe three. Marie?”

The woman helping people out the other exit glanced over her shoulder for a beat, “I don’t know Jae, two, five maybe. Not many more than that.” 

There were at least twenty people waiting, and that wasn’t including the two attendants or their captain or the people Jisung refused to believe were dead.

“No need to worry yet ladies and gentlemen,” the man, Jae, said calmly, “Our captain is checking on the front exits.” He repeated the key facts to the Australian couple in English, then lowered another down.

The plane continued to rise and fall with each cresting wave, far less movement than had taken place in the sky, but it was harder to maintain footing.

The pilot returned and whispered something to Jae and Marie while counting the passengers still remaining.

“Do we,” Jisung’s throat felt dry, “Do we need to use the seats – they float, right?” he managed to ask in a mixture of Korean and English.

There was a clear flash of hesitation, “We’re going to get everyone we can onto the two wing slides. Those of us left,” the pilot gave a contemplative nod, “Will need to use whatever we can.”

The attendants continued to help people and Jisung heard the pilot use the words like ‘hours in the water’ and ‘would be too cold.’

It became very clear that everyone was not going to fit on the available rafts, that they were going to be adrift for some unknown amount of time, and it was becoming very clear that Jisung would not be one of the people on the yellow plastic.

“I’ll have to thank Channie-hyung for teaching me to swim,” the quiet statement broke breathily over Chan’s name.

It was true, Jisung was not a good swimmer when he’d met the Aussie. He had known how, at one point, but an encounter with rapids and a near brush with a crocodile replaced that knowledge with insistent fear. Regardless, Chan had been appalled, far more so than Jisung had though reasonable.

Chan had also been patient and kind. Always careful to make sure that Jisung felt safe when he was learning – relearning.

The first time Chan had brought Jisung to the local pool, the Aussie had gone so far as to _prove _he was a good enough swimmer to save Jisung if needed.

_‘You won’t need it though Sungie! I’m a great teacher.’_

_‘Do I have to though? I’ll never need to swim Hyung…’_

Chan had given him a look then, one Jisung would see often in the future, a look of care and honestly. As though the words that would come next were made of glass and so important even mishearing them would cause everything to crack, _‘Yeah, but Ji, if something ever did happen and I knew but had never done anything to help…just let me teach you, man.’ _

“Sir? I need you to please pay attention,” the captain’s Korean managed to pull Jisung back to the moment, “In a couple of moments I am going to have to cut the slides free – hopefully, the plane stays up until the Coast Guard arrives, but if it doesn’t, keeping the rafts connected is dangerous.” He paused for a moment making sure everyone understood, “We,” there were still eight people on board the plane, “are going to stay on here a bit longer, but when we have to we’ll take a seat cushion and jump as far away from the plane as we can, understand? Then, we’ll swim up to the rafts and tie ourselves to them.”

Jisung nervously looked around. The attendant Jae was among the eight, but he and the captain seemed to be the only crew members.

“Those rafts are far fuller than they should be, that’s why I am not going to tie them to each other, and – though I hate to say it, why we can’t try to get onto them. It’s going to be cold and we’re going to be miserable, but please think of the others.”

There seemed to be no comments – no arguments – and the captain left to release the rafts after speaking to Jae.

It was surreal. With most of the smoke cleared and the doors open the whole plane looked like music video set – a set adrift on an open ocean; cinematic.

“Seungmin and Hyunjin would want pictures…”

“What?”

“Oh nothing,” Jisung slowly lowered himself into a squat. He always felt safe and comfortable in that position. Secure. Minho had once joked that it was because Jisung was already small – ‘_getting smaller probably just makes your squirrel side more confident.’_

God Jisung missed them.

The plane listed suddenly, knocking over some standing luggage and making some of the others crash into seats; the cabin had begun to tilt slightly towards the left.

“Water in the cargo hold,” Jae muttered from a few paces in front of Jisung, “I think that’s our queue…”

The captain sighed heavily, “Yes…okay, everyone, I was hoping we’d get to stay on board a bit longer, but I’m afraid we’re already running out of time,” the plane tilted more, and he handed out seat cushions to everyone, “Slip your hands into the straps. The vest should be enough, but for added flotation…”

Jisung stood to accept the cushion and shivered at the look the captain was giving everyone.

“Jae, you take the right and these three and I’ll take the rest to the left.

“Yes, sir.” Jae nodded and the remaining passengers divided.

Jisung ended up following the captain towards the left. He was the first to jump. The cold water stung – piercing through his clothes and sucking his breath away. The current was stronger than it looked and even when Jisung broke through the surface it almost pulled him downwards again.

He gasped for breath through chattering teeth and blinked back the sting in his eyes – silently thanking Felix for demanding Jisung never wear contacts for long flights.

“Just keep kicking towards,” the captain’s voice broke against the cold wave that rocked everyone, “the raft.”

So Jisung did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Have a wonderful week <2


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy!

Hours. It had been so many hours since they’d been told that the people on Jisung’s plane had been rescued – so many hours since ‘the majority’ were pulled from whatever wreckage there was uninjured. Too many hours without a solid update. Far too many.

It was eating Chan – festering deep in his head, those irrational painful thoughts.

Everyone was suffering; pacing, zoning, some even near tears so riddled with anxiety.

Changbin hadn’t spoken – Jeongin just stared wide-eyed looking at nothing – Seungmin couldn’t stop moving – Hyunjin fidgeted and glanced at the clock every sixty seconds – Woojin kept trying to comfort the others – Minho paced back and forth, stopped for a few seconds nearly cracking, then would pace again – Felix was completely checked out.

And Chan?

Chan was drowning – morbidly poetic given the circumstances. A thing he was sickeningly aware of.

Drowning – no. Jisung wouldn’t drown. Chan knew that he’d been the one to force Jisung to build up his swimming skills. But he could have suffocated. Or burned. Or froze.

Hypothermia was something Chan worried about most. A cut here, a bump there, hell even a broken bone was minor. But the cold. Chan remembers taking classes about the dangers of being _that _cold. And Jisung was super tiny.

What if - 

Chan stood abruptly, accidentally jarring Felix back into reality, and walked stiffly towards the small bathroom.

Jisung was tiny, but he was also fierce, stubborn, and strong-willed.

“That’s right,” Chan mumbled after the bathroom door closed, “Stubborn...Ji will perform at our stage probably… that’s how stubborn.” he tried to convince himself, but it wasn’t working too well. He just kept imagining the worst.

“Channie?” Woojin called out quietly through the door, “you alright?” There was a beat of silence, “I’m going to open the door now,” and he did, slowly, “You know it’s night – you need the light on to see what you’re doing.” He added with a bit of humor as he flipped the switch. 

Chan blinked harshly against the fluorescent bulb, “I,” his voice cracked and he swallowed again before starting, “I didn’t even notice.”

“I assumed as much. You’ve been in here nearly three minutes with it off. Felix was starting to get concerned.”

“I’m just thinking – needed space. I’m fine.”

“None of us are ‘fine’ Channie,” Woojin corrected, “We will be, hopefully soon, but right now we aren’t.”

With slumping shoulders, Chan nodded, “right…”

“Soon this whole thing will be over. We’ll be together – and I’m sure you’ll be spoiling your maknae horridly,”

“Jeonginie is my maknae –“

“But Jisungie was your first maknae. And,” Woojin stopped Chan from interjecting, “you’ll spoil him regardless.”

“What if –“ Chan swallowed thickly and took a deep breath, “What if –“

“‘What ifs’ aren’t helpful Channie,” Woojin chided quietly.

Chan turned towards the mirror and away from Woojin, “I know, but I can’t not think it. I can’t…” he ran a frustrated hand through his hair, tugging harshly for a moment, “It’s dramatic Wooj...but I don’t think I could handle it – if one of the ‘what ifs’ … Ji’s always been there, will always be… should always –“

“Chan,” Woojin turned him around, “stop. You’re just torturing yourself thinking that way – we all are. I’m sure, Ji is on whatever thing – helicopter or boat or whatever – soon you’ll be at UCLA with him. Alright? Soon we’ll get a call from our manager and the others will all fight over who gets to go with you. Dwell on that!” he pulled Chan into a hug as their leader nodded slowly, “at least try.”

He nodded again and wrapped his arms around Woojin, “I know. I do, really,” Chan sighed heavily and pulled away, “I need to check on Changbin…”

“Just focus on yourself at the moment,” when Chan said nothing Woojin continued, “I’m serious alright. Yeah, Changbin is devastated – so are you. Every emotion the others are feeling, you are also feeling.”

“I know. I know you’re right,” Chan sighed again, “I’ll feel better when we know he’s in LA – at the hospital.”

They stood there for another few minutes before Chan reluctantly led the way back out to the others. They hadn’t moved, other than the pacing and fidgeting. Chan decided to sit beside Changbin this time; though he stayed quiet.

The darkness outside eventually began to brighten. Some members slumped in their spots dozing. Others (Chan, Chanbin, and Hyunjin) still stoically awake. The television was still on, passively trying to sell the newest blender from some unknown company.

“Hyung?”

Chan blinked away from his darkened phone, tilting his head towards Changbin in acknowledgment.

“Can I go with you? When Jisungie gets here – to go get him?”

Shifting his gaze, Chan observed the others. Hyunjin was awake listening – waiting for the answer. The others in various positions of unrest; awkwardly smooshed up together, tangled. “What about the others? We can’t all go.”

“I know,” Changbin sounded frustrated and exhausted, “I know but – I _need _to go Hyung.”

The desperation was painful.

“Will you call? Once you’re with him, will you call us?” Hyunjin whispered out his question, “please,”

“The second we have him Hyunjinie. The second,” Changbin reassured.

Chan glanced at his members again, “I’m fine with it. But Binnie, you need to tell the others. We might be able to take one other, but – it’s going to be crowded, and probably, you know, not the happiest of places.”

“I want to go,” Felix’s deep voice broke through the silence and soon there were more murmurs requesting to come. 

Most were silenced the second Chan’s phone started to ring.

He answered it within a second, after fumbling with the thing, and said a quick, “hello,”

“What’s he say?!”

“Shh!”

“Alright, yes-no, I’ll be ready with everything...Just send a message. Okay,” Chan was lowering the phone before the last word was fully articulated, “Ji’s at the hospital with the others, our manager will be here in less than five minutes. I’m going – Changbin needs to come – one more person can come, but they might have to stay in the car depending on how crowded it is. I guess US news outlets haven’t caught wind that Sung was onboard, but it’s only a matter of time.” Chan managed to stop the onslaught of questions and begs with a hand, “I’m not deciding, Changbinnie and I are going to the lobby – whoever is coming with us will meet us downstairs. We will not be waiting, understand, so however you decide, please be quick. I don’t want to leave you here, but I will.”

Chan stood for a few seconds, waiting to see if anyone would argue or question. On the third beat, Jeongin did ask, “Can you facetime the rest of us when Jisungie-hyung is with you?”

“The second we can get to the car,” Changbin supplied as he walked towards the door.

“If he’s up to it,” with a nod Chan turned to follow, grabbing the suitcase he passed along the way – Minho’s maybe or Seungmin’s, Chan couldn’t tell and it didn’t matter, he just needed a change of clothes for Jisung.

“And a phone…”

“What Hyung?” Changbin had turned back questioningly as they entered the stairwell, “What’d you say?”

“Nothing, just Jisungie doesn’t have anything – like his suitcase, phone, all that…”

“Don’t worry. We’ll fix that. We’ll make sure he gets a phone and clothes and everything else floating somewhere between here and Korea will be replaced,” Changbin rushed as they skipped steps in their haste, “He’s fine, right? The other stuff can be replaced.”

“Oh, I know that,” Chan held the door open on the main floor, “He’ll be heartbroken about some of the pictures though – at least the ones he doesn’t have copies of.”

“Don’t worry about that now,”

“I’m not –“

“You’re worried about him, Hyung. So am I, it’s fine to be worried,”

Chan nodded quietly as they entered the lobby, still empty at the early hour, to wait for their manager.

Hyunjin stumbled into them less than a minute later, flushed slightly and breathing harder than normal, “I was worried I’d miss you.”

“Nope, just in time,” Chan pointed towards the black SUV that pulled up just outside the door.

The three easily clambered into the tinted windowed vehicle, which started rolling before they’d even latched their belts, “Traffic shouldn’t be too bad just yet. I’m hoping we are there within the next hour or so.”

“Do you know anything else?” Changbin asked softly.

“I only know that Jisung is being treated,” their manager chuckled warmly, “Smart man, our Sung, he’d written a note with all of his identification so we were contacted well before a lot of people.”

Chan felt himself nodding quietly in agreement, still feeling anxious as the SUV continued rushing forwards.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading!! I have the next chapter finished! AND have another couple chapters done for another fic - I am trying to get WAY ahead of schedule so that I can post stuff in November while I work on my NaNoWriMo stuff.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you have a wonderful week <3


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have a great week!!

The whole drive was excruciatingly slow for the three members in the SUV – and for those left at the hotel and for Jisung most likely – but damn Chan would probably explode if he didn’t get his hands on his friend soon.

There was a police blockade stopping people as they approached the hospital – for security – their manager had theorized.

He was correct. As soon as their SUV pulled up and their manager rolled the window down the officer asked for identification, which they provided.

“Just the four of you then? Do you know whether or not,” the officer paused to look at the clipboard, “Jisung Han,” he butchered ‘Jisung Han’ badly, coming out more like _Jie-song Haan_, “is ready for discharge?”

Chan took over the conversation quickly, “Just the four. We understand if that’s too many and are prepared to wait in the car if necessary. As for Jisung,” Chan made sure to articulate his friend’s name and glanced towards their manager for a second, listening to the answer, “so far as we know,” he started again after the older man finished, “they just wanted to get an IV in him and to get his body temperature back up to normal. That was about – an hour ten ago.”

The officer nodded along, “The four of you should be fine – only about thirty individuals required any treatment and only seven have been admitted for any length.”

“Sir,” Chan started again, somewhat sheepishly, “I don’t know if this will be a thing, but we – Jisung included – are musical idols from South Korea… Kpop. Like a band,” that gained the man’s attention, “We haven’t posted anything about this but -”

The officer interrupted Chan politely with a knowing smile, “I understand – We’re checking everyone coming in at this point. I would request that you do post an update online once your friend has been discharged. To deter anyone from coming.”

“Yes, sir,”

As they pulled forward another car pulled into their spot – Chan quickly relayed the information to the others.

The large parking lot was sectioned off, a sign written in both English and Korean pointing the way towards the section closest to the hospital building. It was mostly empty.

“I’m nervous,” Hyunjin admitted quietly, “what if -”

“Nope! None of that. ‘What ifs’ aren’t productive here Hyunjinie,” Chan cut him off kindly, and pushed the door open, “Let’s go get our Sungshine.” He forced Jisung’s often unused nickname in the hopes of lessening Hyunjin’s apprehension.

The hospital itself was bustling, dozens of people sat in a blocked off section of the waiting area, nurses running among them, then darting off to the back rooms, a few more officers watching from the corners.

“Your names and who are you here for?” 

The clerk's voice startled Chan, but he managed to recover, “We are here for Jisung Han – I’m Chan Bang or, uh, I guess Christopher Bang.”

The clerk gave no sign of hearing him, except for turning the page on his clipboard and scanning through the names, “Yes, here Jisung Han – dehydrated and hypothermic. He’s currently in mod 4. Did you bring clothes?”

Chan had pulled the random assortment of clothes out of the suitcase during the drive – it had ended up belonging to Woojin. “These,” he handed over the large grey sweatpants and soft yellow sweater; and some likely ill-fitting underwear. 

“Good, thank you,” the clerk – who must have been between thirty and forty – called out to one of the nurses nearby, “Carol, they are here for 217.”

“217 is finishing a second IV and still a bit on the cold side – but he should be ready for discharge in five maybe ten minutes. I’ll check his temp again then. If it’s near-normal range, we’ll get him outta here,” grabbing the clothes he added turning towards Chan and the others, “Please just take a seat. I don’t think it will take too long, he’s been improving steadily.”

Chan lead the way to the open seats, “Did you guys catch that?” when he was met with a few shakes and a couple of unsure looks, he repeated what he could in Korean.

“Why 217?” Changbin muttered a few minutes later after they heard a few nurses discuss ‘200’ and ‘13.’

“Probably the 217th passenger or something,” Hyunjin suggested, eyes transfixed on the hectic backdrop.

The clocked ticked by slowly and Chan stared at where the nurse had run off to with the clothes, desperate to see Jisung in that definitely oversized yellow sweater. The sooner he saw him, the sooner Jisung was back with them, the sooner everything would be alright. Things needed to be alright.

“Sung!”

There he was swimming in the oversized sweater and rolled up sweatpants, padding towards them slightly disoriented in hospital slippers. Hair messy, ‘J.One’ necklace glistening.

Chan’s hands wrapped around the younger boy before he recognized he’d stood, careful to not squeeze too tightly and only vaguely aware of Jisung’s arms wrapping around him in return.

“The bruising around his abdomen should fade within the next few days – though the internal bruising will likely cause pain for a bit longer than that,” the nurse informed them calmly.

“Ji? You alright?” Chan whispered quietly, ignoring the woman as she continued, his voice unwillingly wet and tight.

“Ye-ah,” Jisung sniffed, “now? Yeah. But it was so scary Hyung…”

“Shh…” Chan clung tighter hearing their manager tell them to head out, “not now, okay? Don’t worry now. We’re gonna get you to the car and then to the others. And feed you – alright?” he pulled away enough to look at Jisung in the eyes, adding, “We got you.”

Changbin grabbed ahold of Jisung as soon as Chan’s grasp lessened, “We missed you, Sung.”

“I wasn’t gone for more than seventy-two hours Hyung,” it almost held Jisung’s normal humor, if it hadn’t of broken halfway through with a poorly controlled whimper.

“You brat…”

Hyunjin followed closely behind 3racha as they quickly made their way to the SUV, their manager doing the paperwork to get their youngest released.

They were quick to retreat back to the assumed solitude of the SUV – Changbin and Chan sitting on either side of Jisung in the back row, Hyunjin reluctantly sitting in the solo seat in front of them.

“I, uh…” Jisung started stopping as his voice broke, the look reminiscent of the look he often got on stage when he tried to stop tears, “What did you guys do while you waited?”

“We,” Hyunjin paused briefly, “slept, ate, walked.”

“Yeah, just the normal stuff Ji,” Changbin added softly.

“All buckled in? Channie-ah, have you messaged the others?” their manager spoke as he climbed into the driver’s seat.

“Oh, right! On it Hyung,” Chan made sure Jisung was strapped in first, batting the younger’s hands softly when he tried to help and careful to not pull too tightly. Then he brought his phone out and took a picture of his and Jisung’s clasped hands, “For Insta,” he muttered handing the phone to Hyunjin, “Take a shot of the three of us for the others please.”

With a nod, Hyunjin took the phone and unlatched his belt to turn for the picture.

“No, wait, no Hyunjinie you can’t be unbuckled,” Jisung started rambling frantically, “what if we get – wait, what are you doing?!”

“Shh,” Hyunjin was smashed beside Jisung within a second, carefully unbelting his friend and then rebelting the strap around both of them, “It’s okay Sungie, see I’m fine. It’s okay.” he pulled Jisung even closer, allowing the phone to be taken from his fingers, “I’m fine, we aren’t gonna be in a crash. Alright?”

The others were silent while Hyunjin continued to shush Jisung, mumbling encouragements. Chan pulled his phone back to him and message the others instead of sending a photo – promising to video call if Jisung was okay with it – shortly. And posted the picture of his and Jisung’s hands to Instagram, hopefully putting a temporary bandage for their fan’s worries

_\- Together #9orNone -_

“You gotta calm down Sung,” Changbin’s soft pitch seemed to do the trick in calming the younger some, “Everything is alright – Hyunjinie is just dumb -”

“Hey now -”

“Sorry...I just,” Jisung gave up on words for a minute and sunk fulling into Hyunjin – still grateful for Chan’s unmoving hand on his back and Changbin’s gently running through his hair, “I’m good…”

“Course. You’re J.One,” Chan said playfully.

“Yeah,” Jisung managed to laugh as he pulled out of Hyunjin’s grasp, “The world-famous J.One, right? Oh boy what a day…” the dramatic tint to the words managed to overshadow whatever pain was also present, “I’m just really happy to be with you guys.”

Chan’s throat closed tightly around whatever affirmation he planned on saying, instead he simply smiled.

The four lapsed into an easy silence, interrupted only by the hum of the engine and the repetitive ping from Chan’s phone as the others continued to question after Jisung.

By the time they pulled into the hotel parking lot, nearly all the tenseness Jisung had greeted them with had fully drained out of him. He’d molded to Hyunjin on one side and Chan on the other, not asleep but mostly relaxed – safe. Changbin’s hand was still tight in his own.

“Let’s get you inside and fed,” Chan commented nonchalantly, “you should also post to Insta too – everyone is still super worried.”

Jisung laughed warmly, “In a bit Channie-hyung. I just wanna be with everyone first. And don’t we have rehearsal – we perform tomorrow -”

“Tomorrow morning,” Their manager said casually from the front, “rehearsal will be tomorrow morning – you can perform but you won’t be dancing.”

Changbin playfully smacked his hand over Jisung’s mouth before he could protest, “No you don’t. Doc said you got some bad bruising -”

“Ye -”

Changbin clamped his hand over Jisung’s mouth again after Jisung had pulled it off, “and that you should rest. Plus, knowing you, you’re gonna end up sick anyway. Might as well start off resting.”

Jisung had stopped struggling, glaring instead as he waited for Changbin to remove his hand, “I don’t need that much rest.”

“Tough.”

“Tough?” he suddenly questioned Hyunjin’s response, “Channie-hyung -”

“Nope – a nice chair will have your name on it. I’ll write it myself just watch me,” Chan paused adding softly, “none of us want you to hurt yourself and we all know Stays will be fine with it. So, sit tomorrow. For me?”

“Since you asked so nicely, I guess,” Jisung responded with his usual playful demeanor, but Chan could see the unspoken emotion below the surface. 

“Good. Now we need to get you inside before someone hurts themselves trying to look out the window or something – I’ve gotten nearly 300 messages already…”

“Jeez…”

The four piled out of the SUV and shuffled their way into the hotel and up a few floors. Chan was impressed by Jisung.

He’d always known his friend was strong – especially mentally – and anchored remarkably deep. He’d known since they’d met, seen it through the lingering teen angst and unvented angry Jisung sometimes possessed. Yet his level of fortitude here was mind-blowing.

“Open up! I want cuddles!”

The door flung open before Jisung’s fist hit the fake wood and he was encircled by Felix, Seungmin, and Minho’s arms before passing the threshold. 

Jisung kept his tears at bay, effortlessly returning the hugs and muttering, “I’m glad to see you,” or some other variant, to each member he latched onto. Eventually, migrating to the bed. Where he basically stayed through the night.

It was hours later that Jisung’s letter was discovered.

He was sound asleep curled, protected from every side, up against Minho, Felix, and Chan on the main part of the bed with Changbin nestled gently against his thigh. Jeongin, Seungmin, and Hyunjin – unwilling to return to their own rooms – mashed together on the pullout next to it.

It was Woojin who found the note. Still far too awake, body yet to have recovered from the utter agony that everything unleashed – his own worry may have been buried, but it had been there – loud and painful. So instead of sleeping, Woojin wrote some, scrolled through their social feeds, and eventually decided to put the clothes Jisung had been sent home with – still stiff with salt – in the cheap coin laundry the hotel had.

He’d stared at the small red stains near the collar – specks of blood from the nose bleed Jisung mentioned – longer than he should have, before finally emptying the jean pockets and throwing it all in the machine.

The plastic bag didn’t catch his attention at first. Woojin had nearly thrown it all away before catching a glimpse of the paper within it.

The paper was crinkled with the plastic, untouched by water, and very legible.

Woojin liked being the oldest – being the big protective brother. The one seemingly untouched by negative comments and unbothered by the problems that seem to devastate the others.

This wasn’t something he could block out. Even knowing that Jisung was fine and sleeping surrounded by their other members did little to ease the lingering unrest.

He carefully opened the bag and removed the paper. He read it again as the washer roared beside him, before making his way back to the hotel room. Little had changed, the only difference from when he’d left was that Minho was now awake and talking quietly with Chan who’d been on his phone fifteen minutes before.

“Got everything taken care of Woojie?”

Chan’s question sent another soft rattle through the eldest, “Yeah. I, uh, I guess I found his note,” his soft whispers matched Chan’s volume, though it wavered far more than he’d intended.

“You mean like his,” the word ‘goodbye’ remained securely stuck inside of Minho’s throat as he absently pulled Jisung, and his Felix accessory, closer.

With a slow nod, Woojin handed the paper to Chan slowly. “It really could have been much worse.”

No one responded.

Chan knew about the letter, Jisung had quietly admitted to him sometime between dinner and sleep. He’d even wanted to read it – though he wasn’t sure exactly why. The Aussie could imagine the alternative outcome by simply closing his eyes, he certainly didn’t need to read it. Still, he wanted to – can’t hide from reality, Jisung wrote it, it happened.

The piece of paper felt oddly important, a monument or perhaps a totem, something that needed to be kept safe.

“I love you too, Ji,” Chan muttered darkly, glancing at Minho. Silently asking if he’d like to read the note.

“No thanks Hyung,” Minho shook his head slightly, sounding far too content given the situation, “I made you all listen to a goodbye message once, and I know it’s completely different,” he paused. Jisung tried to roll, which pushed Felix down lower, which in turn made Jisung whimper quietly; whether from lack of Felix’s sunshine of because the smaller Aussie connected with the bruise on Jisung’s middle was unclear. In sleep, Felix readjusted and the two quieted, earning a snort from Changbin who had awoken at some point – glazed eyes attentive to Minho as the dancer continued, “it hurt you all the same way it hurt me. So, no. I don’t want to read it.”

“I will,” Changbin rasped out a second later reaching his hand up awkwardly, “put it all behind me, or whatever.”

“We need to figure out what to do on Wednesday, when we fly home,” Woojin quietly added, watching Changbin closely. “Ji’s gonna have some trouble, even if he won’t admit it. And some of us might too…”

“We’ll be together,” Changbin muttered gruffly, “For him and for each other, ya know?” he sighed quietly into Jisung’s thigh.

“The doc mentioned something about prescribing him something for the flight if needed,” Hyunjin’s voice rang out softly from the other bed.

“We’ll take care of each other then,” Chan said smoothly, running a hand through Jisung’s hair, “Wooj, that goes for you too, of course, we got your back too.”

“I know,” Woojin moved to lay on the bed with them, careful not to jostle the September duo, snuggling against Minho and running a hand along Jisung’s arm, “We can handle whatever comes next after this.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!! <3 <3 <3

**Author's Note:**

> I know it isn't my best - still trying to get into the swing of things again - but I think I've got (pun intended) my sea legs again now ;)
> 
> Thanks so much for reading <3 <3


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